Summer 2
For the love of reading text
Mary Poppins by P. L Travers
From the moment Mary Poppins arrives at Number Seventeen Cherry-Tree Lane, everyday life at the Banks house is forever changed.
It all starts when Mary Poppins is blown by the east wind onto the doorstep of the Banks house. She becomes a most unusual nanny to Jane, Michael, and the twins. Who else but Mary Poppins can slide up banisters, pull an entire armchair out of an empty carpetbag, and make a dose of medicine taste like delicious lime-juice cordial? A day with Mary Poppins is a day of magic and make-believe come to life!
White Rose Maths
Geometry: Shape – Understanding angles and symmetry.
Position and Direction – Coordinates and translation on a grid
Statistics: Interpreting and drawing line graphs
Geography/ History
Crime and Punishment - How has crime and punishment changed over the years?
For our History focus, we will understand how and why laws and punishments change over time. Children will explain how attitudes towards crime have changed and understand how and why the police force has changed over time. We will understand that views on what a punishment is have changed over time and we will discuss how and why attitudes towards the suffragettes have changed over time.
Science
Electricity
We will continue our Science focus on electricity, recognising that a switch opens and closes a circuit and associate this with whether or not a lamp lights in a simple series circuit. We will also recognise some common conductors and insulators, and associate metals with being good conductors.
Educational Visit
N/A
PSHE/RSE/ RE
PSHE/RSE - How do we manage risks in different places?
This half term, we will discuss how to recognise, predict, assess and manage risk in different situations. We will know how to keep safe in the local environment and less familiar locations (e.g. near rail, water, road; fire/firework safety; sun safety and the safe use of digital devices when out and about.) Children will understand how people can be influenced by their peers’ behaviour and by a desire for peer approval; recognising how to manage this influence.
Children will understand how people’s online actions can impact on other people and we will know how to keep safe online, including managing requests for personal information and recognising what is appropriate to share or not share online. We will know how to report concerns, including about inappropriate online content and contact
RE - How and why do people mark the significant events of life?
During RE lessons, children will identify some beliefs and make simple links about love, commitment and promises in two religious traditions; describing what they mean and how people live (e.g. through celebrating forgiveness, salvation and freedom at festivals.) We will offer informed suggestions about the meaning and importance of ceremonies of commitment for religious and non-religious people today, describing what happens in ceremonies of commitment (e.g. baptism, sacred thread, marriage) and say what these rituals mean. We will raise questions and suggest answers about whether it is good for everyone to see life as a journey, and to mark the milestones and give good reasons why we think ceremonies of commitment are or are not valuable today.
Art/ D & T/ Music
Art – Our artist focus is Bridget Riley
We will continue to study the artist Bridget Riley, modifying, adapting, combining and designing prints and using tessellation to complete art in the style of Bridget Riley. We will create our own abstract pattern to reflect personal expression and will be able to discuss and evaluate our own work
D&T – Our focus is Mechanisms; Making a car
Within design and technology lessons, we will be building a car chassis. We will design a shape that reduces air resistance and investigate and analyse a range of existing products. We will make a model based on a chosen design and assemble and test our completed product. Finally, we will evaluate ideas and products against a given success criteria.
Music – Reflect, Rewind and Replay.
Spanish
Fruits and Vegetables
This half term, we will name fruits and vegetables, recognise and use masculine and feminine nouns and give our own opinion of a fruit and vegetables, including giving a negative opinion of fruit and vegetables. We will hold a short conversation and answer questions about our fruit/vegetables preferences. We will continue to broaden our vocabulary and understanding by using a dictionary.
PE day
Our PE Day will be on a Thursday. Our sport focus will be ‘Nimble Nets’ in which we will study Tennis, becoming familiar with serving and rallying. Our fitness focus will be ‘Cool Core (Pilates)’ and we will participate in a range of balance, coordination and concentration techniques Our health focus will be ‘Healthy Mind: Healthy Body.’
Spellings/ Reading
Our spellings for this half term will focus on possessive apostrophes with plural words.
We will continue to focus on the Y3/Y4 statutory spelling list throughout all lessons.
Summer 1
For the love of reading text
Stig of the Dump by Clive King
Barney is a solitary eight-year-old, given to wandering off by himself. One day he is lying on the edge of a disused chalk-pit when he tumbles over and lands in a sort of cave. He meets somebody with a lot of shaggy hair and two bright black eyes' - wearing a rabbit-skin and speaking in grunts. He names him Stig. They learn to understand one another, and together they raid the rubbish dump at the bottom of the pit, improve Stig's cave dwelling, and enjoy a series of adventures.
White Rose Maths
Number: Partitioning, comparing and ordering decimals
Measurement: Converting between pounds and pence and calculating with money
Converting between analogue and digital times and converting to and from the 24 hour clock
Geography/ History
Earthquakes and Volcanoes - How does the earth shake, rattle and roll?
For our Geography focus, we will develop an understanding of the causes, outcomes and location of earthquakes and volcanoes. We will aim to understand the distribution of earthquakes and volcanoes, and to know where the world’s most active earthquake and volcanic zone is today. We will discover why people live in the vicinity of volcanoes, and what measures can be taken to make life safer in earthquake zones. Children will be provided with the opportunity to investigate recent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions and the associated issues.
Science
Electricity
For our Science focus, we will identify common appliances that run on electricity and construct a simple series electrical circuit, identifying and naming its basic parts, including cells, wires, bulbs, switches and buzzers.
We will identify whether or not a lamp will light in a simple circuit, based on whether or not the lamp is part of a complete loop with a battery. We will recognise that a switch opens and closes a circuit and associate this with whether or not a lamp lights in a simple series circuit. Finally, we will recognise some common conductors and insulators, and associate metals with being good conductors.
Educational Visit
Think Tank Birmingham Science Museum
We will bring Science to life during our day visit exploring the museum. We will take part in an electrifying Science show linked to our Science learning for this half term and take part in exciting hands on activities throughout the day.
PSHE/RSE/ RE
PSHE/RSE - How can our choices make a difference to others and the environment?
We will understand how people have a shared responsibility to help protect the world around us and understand how everyday choices can affect the environment. We will discuss how what people choose to buy or spend money on can affect others or the environment (e.g. Fairtrade, single use plastics, giving to charity.) We will be developing our skills and vocabulary to share our own thoughts, ideas and opinions during discussions about topical issues. We will know how to show care and concern for others (people and animals) and how to carry out personal responsibilities in a caring and compassionate way
RE - What is it like for someone to follow God? (People of God)
Within our RE lessons, we will discuss clear links between the story of Noah and the idea of covenant.
We will make simple links between promises in the story of Noah and promises that Christians make at a wedding ceremony and the links between the story of Noah and how we live in school and the wider world.
Art/ D & T/ Music
Art – Our artist focus is Bridget Riley
In the style of Bridget Riley, we will use sketch books for recording textures and patterns; exploring and interpreting environmental and manmade patterns. We will modify, adapt, combine and design prints and use tessellation to complete art in the style of Bridget Riley. We will create our own abstract pattern to reflect personal expression and will be able to discuss and evaluate our own work
D&T – Our focus is Mechanisms; Making a car
Within design and technology lessons, we will be building a car chassis. We will design a shape that reduces air resistance and investigate and analyse a range of existing products. We will make a model based on a chosen design and assemble and test our completed product. Finally, we will evaluate ideas and products against a given success criteria.
Music – Blackbird by The Beatles
In music lessons this half term, our learning will be focused around one song: Blackbird by The Beatles - a song about civil rights.
Spanish
Animals
We will list masculine and feminine nouns and be able to say ‘my favourite animal is’ and ask ‘what is your favourite animal?’ Children will apply colours and numbers with the names of animals and add description about animals. ‘el mono es’ to say ‘the monkey is’. We will continue to broaden our vocabulary and understanding by using a dictionary.
PE day
Our PE Day will be on a Thursday. Our sport focus will be ‘Young Olympians’ in which we will study a range of running, jumping and throwing techniques. Our fitness focus will be ‘Fitness Frenzy’ and we will participate in a range of circuit, aerobic and boxercise routines. Our health focus will be ‘Germ Busters’ focusing on personal hygiene.
Spellings/ Reading
Our spellings for this half term will focus on the suffix – ly as well as reviewing the spelling rules when spelling words ending in –tion and –ous.
We will focus on spelling words containing the prefixes sub-, anti-, auto- and inter- and will to continue to focus on the Y3/Y4 statutory spelling list throughout all lessons.
Spring 2
For the love of reading text
Journey to the River Sea by Eva Ibbotson Maia, an orphan, can’t wait to reach her distant relatives a thousand miles up the Amazon. She imagines a loving family with whom she will share great adventures. Instead she finds two spiteful cousins who see the jungle as the enemy and refuse to go outdoors. But the wonders of the rainforest more than make up for the hideous Carters and when Maia meets a mysterious boy who lives alone on a wild river shores, she begins a spectacular journey to the heart of an extraordinary new world. Genres covered within our English lessons will be instruction writing, narrative writing and diamante poetry.
White Rose Maths
Fractions – Adding and Subtracting fractions.
Decimals – Identifying the place value of decimals and dividing by 10.
Geography/ History
Rivers and the Water Cycle – How does the water go round and round? We will focus on human and physical geography discussing the land part of the water cycle using geographical vocabulary and the sky (atmosphere’s) role in the water cycle. We will learn about a major UK river – the River Thames – and follow a river from source to mouth. We will explore the ways in which people use and change some of the world’s major rivers and create a model river or stream to see how changes in water flow affect it. As part of our geographical fieldwork, we will use the zoom function of a digital map to locate places including UK rivers.
Science
Animals including humans We will identify the different types of teeth in humans and their simple functions, describe the simple functions of the basic parts of the digestive system in humans and construct and interpret a variety of food chains, identifying producers, predators and prey.
Educational Visit
Tittesworth Reservoir We will explore the reservoir and discuss human and physical geography as we explore the local area. We will use our geographical vocabulary to reinforce our knowledge of the lands role in the water cycle.
PSHE/RSE/ RE
PSHE/RSE - How do we grow and change? We will understand about puberty and how bodies change, we will discuss how puberty can affect emotions and feelings and how personal hygiene routines change during puberty. We will know how to ask for advice and support about growing and changing and puberty
RE - For Christians, what was the impact of Pentecost? (Kingdom of God) We will make clear links between the story of Pentecost and Christian beliefs about the ‘kingdom of God’ on Earth We will offer informed suggestions about what the events of Pentecost in Acts 2 might mean and give examples of what Pentecost means to some Christians now. We will make simple links between the description of Pentecost in Acts 2, the Holy Spirit, the kingdom of God, and how Christians live now, describing how Christians show their beliefs about the Holy Spirit in worship. Finally, we will make links between ideas about the kingdom of God in the Bible and what people believe about following God today, giving good reasons for our ideas.
Art/ D & T/ Music
Art – Our artist focus is Linda Calverley In the style of Linda Calverley, we will use scale and proportion to accurately draw whole people. We will work on a variety of scales and make computer generated drawings. We will create a pattern in the style of Linda Calverley and record our observations, reviewing and revisiting ideas.
D&T – Our focus is Outdoor Structures We will create a range of different shaped frame structures and design our own outdoor structure by building a frame structure, understanding how to reinforce structures. We will add cladding to a frame structure to add different effects and evaluate the best structure created and giving reasons for this. Spanish Clothing We will name and write the vocabulary for a variety of clothing items, saying ‘ I am wearing…’ and asking questions about what is being worn. We will say ‘My favourite outfit is, use ‘and’ to add further information and use our knowledge of colours. We will broaden our vocabulary and understanding by using a dictionary.
PE day
Our PE Day will be on a Thursday.
Spellings/ Reading
Our spellings will focus on words with endings which sound like ʃɘn spelt tion. We will look at the suffix – ous as well as further developing our knowledge of homophones and near homophones. We will to continue to focus on the Y3/Y4 statutory spelling list throughout all lessons.
Spring 1
Roman Britain: Was the Roman invasion good or bad for Britain?
Was the Roman invasion good or bad for Britain?
As Historians, Year 4 will explore Roman Britain and will consider whether the Roman settlement was a positive experience for all involved. We will use a variety of sources of evidence to investigate the topic, including visual sources of artefacts and archaeological sites such as Hadrian’s Wall. We will also take on the role of a Roman soldier during our educational visit to the Roman museum in Chester.
For our love of reading focus we will immerse ourselves in the story; Kaspar Prince of Cats by Michael Morpurgo, a story based on the tragic maiden voyage of the Titanic. We will follow Kaspar’s journey from the glamorous Savoy Hotel in London, to the luxury of the Titanic, followed by the crowded lifeboat in the icy sea before arriving in New York. The children will be using the storyline to write their own diary entry and a newspaper report all about the catastrophe.
Autumn 2
The Ancient Egyptians
How much did the Ancient Egyptians actually achieve?
As Historians, Year 4 will explore who the Ancient Egyptians were, what they did, and discuss whether Ancient Egypt deserves its reputation as one of the most important early civilisations. We will aim to reach conclusions about the Ancient Egyptian people through discussing key artefacts and what they tell us, by studying the pyramids and understanding Ancient Egyptians beliefs about creation and the afterlife.
For our love of reading focus we will be joining Toad, Mole, Ratty and Badger in the Wind and the Willows. We will be writing about their adventures in the countryside and around Toad Hall; finding out how the friends get Toad out of trouble and how they protect Toad Hall from the wicked creatures of the Wild Wood. We will also be writing a non-chronological report based on one of the main animals and we will be writing limerick poetry.
Autumn 1
Can you come on a great American road trip?
Inspired by Johnny Cash singing ‘I’ve been everywhere’ - will travel the North and South American continents, and distinguish between the terms ‘continent’, ‘region’, ‘country’, ‘state’ and ‘city’ along the journey. We will be finding and using images and maps on the internet and in atlases, children will make notes on cities and record their countries and/or states. They will compare the built environments and settings of the cities and, through them, identify some key regions of the American continents. For our Big Finish, children will use the song ‘Route 66’ as the stimulus for creating an illustrated, labelled and annotated map of the historic route.
As part of our love for reading, we will be using the infamous Roald Dahl story; Matilda. The children will compare contrasting characters and settings as they develop their descriptive vocabulary before writing a narrative text based on this magical story.